OLYMPIA – The recreational fishery in Marine Area 1 (Ilwaco) will reopen to retention of chinook, coho and pink salmon at 12:01 a.m. on Sunday, Sept. 2, the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) announced today.

As in previous weeks, anglers in Marine Area 1 will be allowed only one chinook as part of their two-salmon daily limit and must release any chinook measuring less than 24 inches and hatchery coho less than 16 inches. Wild coho must be released unharmed.

The recreational salmon fishery in Marine Area 1 closed Aug. 25 to give fishery managers an opportunity to assess the season’s catch.

Pat Pattillo, salmon policy coordinator for WDFW, said reopening the recreational fishery in Marine Area 1 will give anglers an opportunity to harvest salmon remaining under coastwide quotas established by the Pacific Fishery Management Council last April.

Coastwide, recreational anglers had caught about 8,500 chinook and about 92,000 coho through Aug. 26.

Salmon fishing in Marine Area 1 is scheduled to continue through Sept. 30. Farther north, salmon fishing in marine areas 3 (LaPush) and 4 (Neah Bay) is scheduled to continue through Sept. 15, and through Sept. 16 in Marine Area 2 (Westport-Ocean Shores).